Establishment of Single-Party rule in china 1949-1952

Success of the CCP Most historians view the CCP’s achievement of successfully establishing a single-party state in 1949 as remarkable. The CCP… fulfilled aims of the “May 4th Generation” (restored Chinese unity and cohesion without foreign interference) Took on US during Korean War only a year after coming to power (fought to a standstill, saved communist North Korea from collapse) Considered exceptionally impressive given that China had suffered 40 years of civil war, disorder and crime

Domestic policies The CCP was very pragmatic in their approach to Chinese rule - they were prepared to tolerate other political parties. government was initially a coalition (8 parties, with the exclusion of the KMT), but the CCP dominated “People’s Democratic Dictatorship” “People” included working class (petty bourgeoisie, peasants, industrial proletariat) – did not include wealthy, intellectuals, reactionaries

Domestic policies CCP divided China into 6 regions – each governed by a military bureau Government initially included non-CCP officials, but by 1950s party had grown enough to remove non-CCP from power True unification of China under CCP realized by end of 1950

“National capitalism” 1949-1952 Mao’s main goal was to make China a ‘great world power’, but first the CCP had to achieve economic recovery after the damage done by the civil war. CCP was willing to work with the ‘national capitalists’ – those businessmen with no close ties to the KMT State took control of heavy industry and banking (light industry and smaller factories remained privately owned) Industry and agricultural production recovered successfully, dealt with hyperinflation and balanced budget, issued new (carefully controlled) currency (yuan)

Land reform (1950-1957) 1950: The biggest change introduced by the CCP was land reform (Agrarian Reform Law) Went from gradual in the 1930s-40s, to rapid in the 1950s CCP sent to rural villages, but the peasants were encouraged to take the lead (Mao’s mobilization of masses) - attacked landlords - “Speak Bitterness” campaigns - encouraged ‘mutual-aid’ teams

Land reform (1950-1957) Results of Land Reform: Almost 2 million landlords died (Many beaten, killed during the ‘Speak Bitterness’ meetings) Land taken and redistributed to the peasantry (happened gradually, so more peaceful than Soviet Union, most resistance from wealthy peasants) Gave peasants a stake in the revolution since they now had something to lose (land) if the CCP was overthrown (Mao’s ‘continuous revolution’) Initial stage was completed by 1952, by 1957 around 90% of peasants worked on a collective

First five year plan (1953-1957) Goal was to increase China’s industrial production (nationalization of all private industries, businesses) Money was obtained through Soviet loans and pay low prices to peasants for grain, thereby creating a surplus of capital Industrial expansion included: - construction of iron, steel and coal mills and mines - building of roads, railways (especially in remote, mineral- rich areas) - increase in production of domestic consumer goods

The great leap forward (1958 -1962) Mao was skeptical of the Five Year Plan because it was too closely aligned with Soviet plans (wanted to assert China’s independence) Abandoned it in favor of the Great Leap Forward (believed China should “walk on two legs” – include both agriculture and industry – and industry had been neglected under ‘Five Year Plan’ GLF focused on labor-intensive projects using large cooperatives, or communes. (26,000 communes set up in 1958, contained 5,000 families each- this was not just economic, but also cultural and social) The goal of the GLF communes was to break down the distinction between peasant and worker, urban and rural and convince people to put aside their loyalties to families and villages in favor of the ‘party’ and ‘country’.

The great leap forward (1958-1962) Mao’s Great Leap Forward was a disastrous failure because: 1. CCP officials were unprepared for the vast scope of the GLF (there was very little prior planning) 2. Mass mobilization (contrary to Mao’s belief) could not compensate for the lack of money or technology necessary to industrialize the nation 3. Flawed agricultural reforms (many based on Russian agronomist, Lysenko, and his “Four Pests” plan) 4. Peasant resentment (lack of material incentives, frustration at poor planning, bad policies) 5. Failure by Mao, and fear by CCP top officials, to admit failure

Four pests campaign The “four pests” that Mao wanted eradicated were: 1. Rats 2. Flies 3. Mosquitoes 4. Sparrows (later changed to bed bugs, then roaches) This was also known as the “Kill a Sparrow Campaign”, or the “Sparrow War”. It resulted in - the near extinction of the Eurasian Tree Sparrow - the growth of the locust population, which in turn resulted in the decline in grain/rice harvests - the Great Chinese Famine (an estimated 25-40 million Chinese died from starvation) Reminder of the necessity to preserve native species, while preventing the spread of invasive (non-native) plants and animals, in order to preserve the balance of nature!

Four Pests campaign A propaganda poster encouraging the killing of the “four pests”, a child showing off the sparrows he has killed, a truck load of dead sparrows paraded through the streets

Results of domestic policies By the end of 1960, China was in a state of crisis. It was suffering its worst famine ever, armed rebellion by peasants and lack of competent leadership (Mao gave up position as CCP Chairman in 1959) The GLF was ended in 1961 and it took over 5 years for China to recover from the economic damage it caused Mao met with W.E.B. DuBois in 1959 – DuBois was a devoted communist later in life

Results of domestic policies Starting in the early 1960s, the CCP broke up the communes into smaller units (major retreat from radical collectivization of 1950s) Economy under control of Liu Shaqui (CCP Chairman after Mao) and Deng Xiaoping. CCP started to divide ideologically (radical communists who still supported Mao, ‘pragmatists’ who supported Liu and Deng) This continued through the 1970s. Liu Shaqui (CCP Chairman 1959-1968) Deng Xiaoping (“pragmatist” – guided China economically in 1960s-1970s)